



The Hydro-Electric Centre 



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PUBLISHED BY 

COPYRIGHT LEAKE CARRAWAY. MANAGING SECRETARY 

Chai-locoi, M. c:,, 1933 



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HARLOTTE, N. C, the county seat of 
Mecklenl/urg, is not the largest town in the 
United States, and it has not reached that 
point where it cannot grow and show 
improvement in many hnes. But there are 
so many features of excellence and superiority, that to 
those who are seeking a home, a place of business for an 
established enterprise, or a place in which to organize a 
new industrial undertaking, Charlotte offers unusual 
opportunities. 

This city is not a place where a man with no means 
can make an independent fortune without effort, nor is 
it a place where capital can make such returns as are 
offered and never realized in sections more widely adver- 
tised. 

Within the past three years, the growth of Charlotte 
has kept pace with that of other cities of this section of 
the Un'ted States, and at this time the population is 
about 50,000. This figure is under the average estimate 
of those who are in a position to know the facts, but it is 
the intention of this publication to be ultra-conservative 
rather than to stretch a single point a hairsbreadlh. At the 
taking of the last United States Census, the population 
was a little less than 35,000, and since that time the 
growth has been about the same as for several years 
before. 

While the city has grown in point of numbers, her 
development along business lines has been greater, if 
possible, and within the past five years the commerce of 
Charlotte has shown a greater increase than any city in 
the Southeast. 



The growth of postoffice receipts at Charlotte is an 
indication of the growth of general business and popula- 
tion. In 1 905, the receipts of the Charlotte postoffice 
amounted to $84,784.20, while last year the records 
show total receipts of $154,296.20, and the indications 
are that the receipts this year will reach into the neighbor- 
hood of $175,000. 

If you are making a success where you are, and if 
you believe that by coming to Charlotte you might make 
a greater success; if you are dissatisfied where you are, 
and want to make a change for this reason; if the 
climate of your section leaves anything to be desired; 
if the educational facilities of your community are not 
first-class in every respect ; if the religious environment 
where you now reside is not just what you desire for 
yourself and your children; if you believe you would be 
better satsfied in Charlotte than where you are now 
located, you will receive a most hearty welcome in this 
Queen City of the South. 

No saloons exist in Charlotte and it is one of the cities 
of the South noted for the temperance of its residents. It 
is therefore, an ideal section in which to bring up a 
family. 

Charlotte as a convention city is gaining fame every 
year. This present year not fewer than fifteen organi- 
zations meet in this city, bringing visitors from all sections 
of the country. There are several reasons for this — one 
being the excellent transportation facilities, another the 
climate, and still another is the number of available con- 
vention halls within easy reach of the railway station 
and hotel districts of the city. 

Within four blocks of Independence Square are to be 
found not fewer than a dozen halls, where meetings of 
from one hundred to four thousand can be held with all 
possible convenience and comfort. These halls are at 
the disposal of organizations for meetings without cost, 
and with a hearty welcome. 




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^5^^^5^ HARLOTTE'S eight banks are known 
g^.?^A'^^j wherever Charlotte people transact busi- 
v^^-U v' J' nsss — not as paragons of the financial 
®^?>^TJ*- ''^\ world, but as safe and sound and conserva- 
^^^^ — DO tive business institutions, where the needs of 
their customers are looked after carefully, and all 
courtesies consistent with sound banking are shown the 
public at large. The capital of the combined banks of 
Charlotte totals $2,250,000, with assets of over $14,- 
000,000; and at the last call of the Comptroller of the 
Currency, made for June 4, 1913, the deposits of the 
eight banks were shown to be $7,234,582.40, while the 
loans totaled $9,600,770.91. The surplus and profit 
accounts of the banks of this city on that date were 
$1,791,937.36. 

During the financial stringency in 1907, the Char- 
lotte institutions did not at any time fail to make pay- 
ments of all accounts, and had the distinction of being 
the only city between Richmond and Atlanta where this 
condition prevailed. The banking of Charlotte is char- 
acterized by progressive conservatism, which is one of the 
basic prnciples of all business of this city. 




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5]HARLOTTE'S public and semi-public 
buildings are in keeping with the size and 
progress of the place. The city hall, 
located on Tryon Street, houses the entire 
city government, and is adequate for at 
least several years to come. 

Among other buildings which are in daily use by the 
public, and which attract more than usual attention 
from the visitor, and are sources of pride to the resident, 
might be mentioned the Southern Manufacturers' Club, 
seen on the opposite page. It is said that this is the most 
nearly perfectly-appointed clubhouse in the Southern 
States; and presidents of the Nation have expressed deep 
admiration for the appointments and arrangements. 

The Carnegie Library, located on Tryon Street, is 
unique, in that it is open to the people of the City of 
Charlotte and the County of Mecklenburg alike. Thou- 
sands upon thousands of volumes are to be found here, 
and the support comes, not only from the city, as is usually 
the case, but the county authorities assist materially in its 
maintenance, and the residents of the county of Meck- 
lenburg make the same use of the library as do the peo- 
ple of the City of Charlotte, the same rules applying to 
both. 

On another page, grouped with a number of Churches, 
is to be seen the Charlotte Y. M. C. A. building, one 
of the most complete to be found in the country. Built 
by Charlotte funds and Charlotte men, this building 
houses many young men, who are given the best environ- 
ment to be obtained, and where they are kept apart from 
the contaminating influences so often found in city life. 
The religious 1 fe of the Y. M. C. A. is similar, in large 
measure, to that of the Associations throughout the 
country, yet there is a difference, too, in that the services 



are interesting to a marked degree, and the attendance 
is remarkable. 

The Boys' department of the Y. M. C. A. is a feature 
which has within the past twelve months brought a num- 
ber of families to Charlotte, since here they get the best 
training, religiously and physically, to be had in the 
country, without the denominational feature which pre- 
cludes the attendance of many of the youth of opposing 
religious belief upon the activities of any particular 
church. 

The Mecklenburg Country Club, shown next to the 
bottom on the preceding page, is just outside the city, 
where one of the most beautiful and attractive golf links 
in the country is to be found. By those who have traveled 
much, it is said that the Country Club is ideal in setting, 
location, and appointment. 

Within the past few years a number of new build- 
ings have been added to Charlotte, and at this time the 
contract for the Masonic Temple, one of the finest struc- 
tures in the State, is about to be let, the plans having 
been accepted. This building will be in keeping with 
the spirit of progress which has dominated Charlotte for 
the past several years, and will provide a home for all 
the Masonic bodies of the city, as well as for the Mystic 
Shrine of the State, and the higher bodies of the Order. 

In this connection, it is stated that within the coming 
twelvemonth at least three other pubic buildings will 
be started, including the postoffice of which mention is 
made elsewhere. 

The City Hall is at this time adequate for the demands 
put upon it, and in addition to the governmental uses to 
which it is put one large hall is turned over to the use of 
the veterans. 

Still another suite of rooms is made use of by the 
officers of the Associated Charlies, which looks after 
the poor and needy of the city, reducing begging to a 
minimum. 




-S W W WlliiAiN DiCV i'J.O i^V( iCMT 




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ilT THE top of this page will be seen 
photographs of the entrance and views of 
one of ihe suburban developments at Char- 
lotte. This property embraces more than 
30> twelve hundred acres, and has been inr- 



proved at an expense of more than six hundred thousand 
dollars, and there rema-ns nothing to be done which could 
add in any way to the pleasure or the comfort of those 
residing there. 

This development is similar to Rowland Park, at 
Baltimore, but those who have seen the Charlotte under- 
tr.king are of the opin'on that when completed it will not 
suffer in comparison even with the far-famed Maryland 

plan. 

From the heart of the city, this development is reached 
by electric street railway cars on short schedules, and 
asphalt streets form a continuous thoroughfare from all 
parts of the city. 

In this and all other suburban developments about the 
City of Charlotte, especial attention is paid to parking 
areas, and this forms one of the most attractive features 
of present residential section developments. 



M A M U F A C T \J R 1 N G 




HARLOTTE is the center of the textile 
industry of the United States. Within a 
radius of one hundred miles are to be found 
more mills, more spindles, and more looms 
than anywhere else in the world. 

There are several reasons for this. One is the presence 
of cheap and satisfactory power. Another is the presence 
of skilled labor at a price the manufacturer can secure it. 
Another is the presence of the raw material. Still another 
is the excellent transportation facilities to the markets of 
the world. 

One of the most attractive features to the manu- 
facturer, however, is the fact that there is not that dis- 
turbing element of trade unionism which is found in so 
many other manufacturing communities. The manu- 
facturer at Charlotte takes his labor into partnership with 
him, and they work in harmony, co-operating to the end 
that both are satisfied. Therefore there is no need for 
trade unions, and none exist. 

On the opposite page will be seen pictures of some of 
Charlotte's manufacturing enterprises. These are recent 
photographs, and give something of the spirit which 
exists between the employer and the employee here. 

While Charlotte's chief manufacturing industry is cot- 
ton, there is a wide diversity of enterprise in this field. 
From piping which went into the construction of the sub- 
ways through which speed the electric trains under the 
streets of New York, to the handsome casket in which 
a multi-millionaire was buried recently, is a long cry ; but 
Charlotte supplied both. 

Only recently a Charlotte manufacturer shipped to St. 
Petersburg an entire frainload of agricultural implements, 
to be used by the Imperial Department of Agriculture 
of Russia. 



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HARLOTTE has come to be known 
throughout the United States as "The 
Electric Centre." It is not merely a name, 
it is a designation. Within fifty miles of 
this city are located four immense hydro- 
electric plants, generating a total of more than a quarter 
of a million electric horsepower. And one of the dis- 
tinctive features of this situation is that the four are 
owned and operated by separate and distinct companies 
and people, there being no connection between them. 
One of these, on the ^ adkin River, not far from Char- 
lotte, is spending twelve hundred thousand dollars in 
development, and will generate two hundred thousand 
electric horsepower da-ly. Another, which serves Char- 
lotte, is now generating, transmitting, and delivering 
one hundred and thirty-two thousand electric horsepower 
daily, and is at this time building, a little to the north of 
Charlotte, another plant, which will generate one hun- 
dred and eighty thousand electric horsepower daily. 

The streets of more than one hundred towns and cities 
are being lighted by the power generated by these four 
companies. The homes of thousands of people are be-ng 
made more comfortable and attractive by the modern 
lighting system. The cost of power for manufacturing 
and other industries throughout this entire section is 
attracting many here from communities where coal is too 
high, and where electric current is either too expensive 
or unavailable. 

Charlotte is an ocular demonstration of the value of 
up-to-the-minute street light ng. Durng the present year 
a new lighting system has been installed, and the "Great 
White Way" which graces the principal streets of this 
city is but one of the many advantages derived from the 
electrx generating systems at her very doors. 




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AVE you been seeking a city for a home 
where your daughters could attend a high- 
class college for women, and still remam 
under the home roof and am:d the home 
surroundings? Have you examined into 
the cond tions prevailing at Charlotte, N. C? If you 
have not, you may be surprised to find here colleges 
which will fill your desire completely and satisfactorily. 
Under the best possible management, containing the 
best instructors to be secured at any price, anywhere, 
and located in the famous Piedmont section of North 
Carolina, Charlotte female colleges offer an unusually 
attractive suggestion to the parents who have sought long 
and unsuccessfully for just these conditions. 

This situation at Charlotte has brought many families 
to this city who have become enamored of the climate, 
the people, and conditions generally, and have become 
permanent residents instead of returning to their former 
homes when their daughters have completed the course, 
and have left the institution graced with every accomplish- 
ment needed or desired. This is but one of the most 
attractive features of the City of Charlotte. 




;^ R A r :C !l N A 1, « O T) ( H S 

HE spirit of fraternity is especially strong 
'f" in Charlotte. There are dozens of fra- 
'v;,' lernal organizations in this city, and with- 
v;S> out exception they are active in their 
various lines of work. Among the organi- 
zations is to be found the Masons, who have here three 
"Blue Lodges," followed by bodies of all the York 
Rite, and all of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry — the 
Chapter, Council, and Commandery in the former; 
the Lodge of Perfection, Chapter, Council, and Con- 
sistory in the latter. Oasis Temple, Ancient Arabic 
Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, has its home in this 
city, and membership over the entire State. 

The Knights of Pythias are strong here, there being 
three lodges with a large and active membership. The 
Dramatic Order Knights of Khorassan maintain Suez 
Temple, No. 73, with headquarters at Charlotte. Its 
membership covers the entire State. 

The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the 
Eagles, Red Men, Woodmen of the World, Modern 
Woodmen, Knights of Columbus, Junior Order United 
American Mechanics, the Eastern Star, and a Hebrew 
Society are among the fraternal associations of Charlotte. 
These organizations are all active to a degree, regular 
meetings being held at stated times, and many special or 
called meetings are held to transact the business of the 
various bodies. 

The Elks have their own clubhouse, a handsome 
building, well equipped and conveniently located; the 
Masons are building a temple, which will be a credit to 
the fraternity and the city; and other organizations are 
well prepared to do the work assumed by them. It is 
said that Charlotte is one of the most thoroughly organ- 
ized towns, from a fraternal viewpoint, in the country. 



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T the top of this page will be seen, in the 
center, a view of a residence street, giving 
an idea of the appearance of Charlotte 
outside the business section, and still within 
the city proper, in contradistinction to the 
suburban developments which are attracting so many 
people here. 

On either side is to be seen residences in other sec- 
tions of the city proper, surrounded by large and beau- 
tiful lawns, and lacking that crowded appearance which 
detracts so much from the attractiveness of living in a 
city. 

In fact, this is one of the characteristics of Charlotte. 
There are few houses which are crowded against another, 
and the visitor to this city speaks of this fact early in his 
sojourn here. Wide home sites are the rule, and this 
adds greatly to the beauty of the dwelling, to say noth- 
ing of the added healthfulness. 

Rental property in Charlotte differs from the same 
sort of property in many other cities, in that as large and 
as beautiful homes are to be leased in this city as can be 
bought or built by the owner. 




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HE newcomer to Charlotte is immediately 
impressed with the idea that religion is no 
small part of the life of this city. This he 
realizes not only from the presence of the 
church buildings which he sees on every 
hand, but if he happens to be on the street just before or 
after the regular time for public worship he will be im- 
pressed with the fact that the people of Charlotte go to 
church. In this city, it is the thing to do. 

But the religious life of Charlotte does not express 
itself merely in churchgoing. The people of the churches 
are always in the forefront of every effort for moral, 
social, and civic betterment. Hospitals and orphanages, 
the Associated Charities, and nearly every form of insti- 
tutional work for charitable relief and uplift have 
originated in the churches. When clear moral issues face 
the voting citizens of Charlotte the pulpits of the city lift 
up a clear and united voice with no uncertain sound. 

In spite of the fearless way in which the churches of 
Charlotte try to work out the solution of the practical 
questions of everyday living, there is very little "dabbling 
in politics" on the part of the Church forces; no lining 
up of Protestants and Roman Catholics, Jews and 
Gentiles, against one another; and little of the political 
partisanship which arises from religious prejudices. There 
are eight or ten Christian communions in Charlotte, and 
no one of them is so do.minant in influence or numbers as 
to lead that particular church into the temptat'on of 
political arrogance. 

The Churches are alive and progressive in providing 
for the future development and the future needs of 
"Greater Charlotte." A practical and vital religion has 
pervaded and does now pervade the life of Charlotte. 



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HE \X'oman's Club of Charlotte is an in- 



|/" stitution which is do!ng much for the city, 
and one in which the leaders among the 
ladies are taking an especially active and 
*0< >0 efficient interest. The Club comprises S!X 
departments, under which the active work of the organi- 
zation is accomplished. 

The Educational department is one which enlists the 
interest of many of the women of the city, because of its 
basic worth to citizenship. In all good work lookmg to 
the betterment of educational facilities and conditions this 
department is especially active. 

The Health department is one of the working depart- 
ments of the Club, and its energies are divided over the 
entire city. Especial attention is paid to the handling 
of food products, the water supply, health in the schools, 
and anything which bears on the health of the city is 
welcomed by this department. 

The Literature department is one which is very popu- 
lar, in that it is so intensely interesting to those who are 
members ; and each year witnesses additional activity. 

Music is another department which is especially active. 
Artists of international note are brought to Charlotte 
through the efforts of this department, and the science of 
harmony is given due attention. 

Household economics is a department which attracts 
many members of the Club, and here it is that some of 
the best work of the organization is done. The science 
of housekeeping is the basis of this department, and its 
success is phenomenal. 

The Civic department, the sixth, is where the ladies 
enlist many of the children of the city, under the title of 
the Junior Civic League, and much good is being wrought 
in this way and by this means. 




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HARLOTTE only recently awoke to the 
necessity of city parks; yet, within a com- 
paratively short time, much has been done 
in this regard. A number of breathing 
places, "Lungs of the City," are to be 
found in Charlotte; and the pictures at the top of this 
page will give an idea of the views in some of them. 
At the rear of the Federal Building, facing Fourth and 
Mint Streets, Vance Park, in the heart of the city, affords 
a resting-place under delightful shade trees in the summer, 
and in the winter it is the gathering place for many, both 
young and old, in search of recreation. On the outer 
edges of the city are to be found a number of parks; 
and several suburban developments have set aside charm- 
ing park areas for future development. 

At this time, the matter of a chain of parks running 
through the city, and forming almost a complete belt 
about Charlotte, is being considered. 

Just outside the city, on the Catawba River and other 
waters, are to be found recreation parks, easily reached 
by electric cars and trains, so that the people have play- 
grounds where they can keep close to nature. 



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j T IS stated upon apparently good authority 
that the death rate of Charlotte is the 
lowest in the United States, save one. In 
this connection it is pointed out that there 
are no conditions about Charlotte which 
induce ill health. There is lacking the malarial con- 
ditions which prevail in many other sections of the 
country, and the fact that it is located 189 miles inland 
precludes the idea of a superfluity of humidity, which is 
so deadly in the summer months in other cities; and the 
Blue Ridge mountains at her back door safeguard her 
from the winds of winter, which take toll of so many 
places. 

The sanitation of Charlotte, of which more is said on 
another page in this publication, adds to the health ful- 
ness of the city to a wonderful degree. It is well-nigh 
impossible for illness to prevail where cleanliness abounds, 
and it is the pride and boast of the citizenship of this 
city and of her administration that it is most difficult to 
locate anywhere a city that presents a neater appearance 
from the outside and which maintains this cleanliness 
throughout her ramifications. 

The health department of the city maintains a close 
watch over the people of Charlotte, and ever and anon 
action to prevent contamination is taken, resulting in pro- 
tection and safely to the people. The milk and water 
supply is carefully guarded, to see that by this means no 
illness comes upon this people; and with the most equable 
climate in the United States it is but natural that Char- 
lotte's health should be notable and proverbial. 

This city is not a health resort, but conditions pre- 
vailing here are conducive to the best health. There is 
nothing which militates against and everything whicb 
assists nature in her undertaking. 




CKAiU.Or r'i'y'.S Y/ACtW .SC/i^;M,Y 




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HE source and supply of water for a city is 
one of the most important features of com- 
munity life, and in this particular Charlotte 
is especially fortunate. At a cost of $32 ! ,- 



^XI> 000, the city has just completed a new 



supply system, which affords a capacity of five million 
gallons daily, with a reservoir capacity of sixty million 
gallons. When the fact that the daily consumption of 
water in Charlotte is about two million gallons is con- 
sidered, it is seen that the water in the reservoir v/ill 
supply the city for a solid month in case of droughts, 
which are known to give cities so much trouble. 

The entire city of Charlotte is piped for fire protec- 
tion, as well as for use in business and the home, and 
throughout the city the pressure is all that could be de- 
sired. At the time the pipe line to the Catawba River, 
ten miles distant, was laid, twenty-nine thousand dollars 
was spent in extending the c;ty mains to reach sections 
which up to that time had not been properly cared for. 
Wholesome water in abundance is to be found in Char- 
lotte by those seeking a business or home location. It is 
one of the city's chief assets. 




c !( A !i L o T -r iC !( o -r X I. .s 

ITH modern buildings, equipped as nearly 
perfectly as money and good judgment will 
allow, Charlotte's hotels offer much more 
than do institutions of this sort in the 
average town, and the popularity of the 
city with traveling salesmen is proof positive of the ex- 
cellence of Charlotte's hotels. 

At this time the hotels of this city can take care of 
fifteen hundred people without crowding the least, and 
one thousand more can be cared for in a pinch in the 
regular hotels, to say nothing of sixty-five boarding- 
houses, in which fifteen hundred more can find accommo- 
dations of varying character. At the same time, two 
other modern hotels are being erected, and before the 
coming of the new year they will be ready for occu- 
pancy. They are located in different sections of the 
city, so that neither will interfere with the other nor 
with the existing hotels. 

Charlotte hotels are fortunate in that they secure 
immense quantities of food products from the fertile 
fields of Mecklenburg and adjoining counties, while the 
small fruit used is home product almost entirely, and 
apples come from the nearby mountainous regions to the 
north of this city. 

Poultry used here is grown for the most part in this 
and surrounding counties, and in fact almost all the food 
served in Charlotte's hotels is "home-grown" and there- 
fore fresh from the fields, which the average traveler 
fails to find and appreciates it when he does find it. 

Charlotte's hotels are used extensively by people 
going from the North to the South, who desire to break 
the long journey. Here they find a most welcome break 
in their trip from one part of the country to another, and 
once here they make it a rule to stop over in both direc- 



4i 



tions. A most favorable impression of Charlotte is thus 
made. 

Another attractive feature about the hotels of Char- 
lotte IS that at no time do the managers thereof run the 
rates up. In certain cities of this country it has been 
charged that hotel managers have taken advantage of 
the presence of large numbers of visitors to the city, and 
have made charges which were entirely unreasonable, 
simply because they had the advantage at that particular 
time. 

The managers of the hotels of Charlotte are friends 
of the city in which they live and do business. They 
realize full well that to run the charges up when the city 
is full of visitors is poor advertising, both for them and 
the city, and they, one and ail, refrain from this perni- 
cious practice, at all times and under ail conditions. 

In the hotels of Charlotte will be found an unusually 
warm welcome, and the courteous treatment accorded the 
casual visitor to this city is noted. It is not the sole in- 
tention and aim and idea of the managers to secure for 
services rendered so much money, but to malce each and 
every guest feel that he is really a guest of the city; and 
every effort is made to leave a most favorable impression 
upon those who sojourn within her gates temporarily. 

The location of Charlotte's hotels is still another 
attractive feature. Several are located in the very heart 
of the business sections, while others are near the rail- 
way stations, so that the transient guest may take his 
choice of locations as best suits his individual needs. 

It is claimed by those who know whereof they speak 
that the service rendered by the Charlotte hotels is not 
surpassed anywhere in the country, and the large number 
of traveling men who make this city headquarters, espe- 
cially over Sunday, is proof of the excellence of the 
public houses of Charlotte. 

Comfort and convenience is the aim and motto of 
hotel managers here. 




■[• [I A iM .s \' o ii r A -r ( O M 



HARLOTTE is the most favored city in the 
/ ff'-iT'-l^-- '' i Carolinas from a transportation viewpoint. 
r'v%-}'-5 - At this time, there are three hnes of railway, 
©'>^^"5l^Br each separate and distinct in ownership and 
< ^ y^^ operation; and before the year is done 
another will have been completed into the city, from the 
east, giving Charlotte an additional deep-water outlet. 

More than sixty passenger trains arrive and leave 
Charlotte within the day, and many people reside here 
for the reason that it is so easy to reach any and all sec- 
t:ons of the Southeast from here. 

What is true of the passenger service is also true of the 
freight service. Fast through freight service is maintained 
by two of the lines entering Charlotte, from the North 
and East, and from the South and West. This makes 
Charlotte an ideal distributing center, and with the com- 
ing of the other line to the Coast, which will be put into 
operation this Fall, still another advantage will accrue. 

Prompt service, both passenger and freight, marks the 
operation of the railway lines serving this section, and this 
is one of the advantages Charlotte is offering especially to 
traveling salesmen and manufacturers. 



N E A Tl 13 Y TO ¥/ M ^S 




HARLOTTE is especially fortunate, in 
tRat she is located near no town as large as 
herself, and that she is the center of a great 
section covered by smaller cities and towns 
which co-operate with her to a wonderful 
extent, resulting in mutual benefit. 

Within a radius of fifty miles of Charlotte, there are 
one hundred and fifty cities and towns where dwell the 
best people in the world, who are satisfied with their lot 
in life, and are enthused wth the idea that in Piedmont 
North Carolina is the garden spot of the earth. The 
prox-mity to Charlotte affords them opportunity to trade 
in these markets for the things which are not to be found 
there, and this means big retai. establishments for th^s 
city. It means that the merchants of this Piedmont 
section, instead of going to the North, as was the case 
only a few years ago, for large stocks of gcods, tying up 
immense sums of money for long periods of time, easily 
"fill in" from the nearby wholesalers at Chailotte. re- 
sulting in building up a big jobbing industry :n Char- 
lotte, saving them in freight charges, lime lost in going 
to market, and interest on money which can be used to 
better advantage. 

Throughout this section are grown many of the food 
products upon which Charlotte subsists. This means that 
the planter or trucker who resides in this section is r;ore 
fortunate than those of almost any other section of the 
country, in that he is close to an ever-ready market. 

In these towns there are many manufacturers which 
call upon Charlotte for many items of manufacture. In 
fact, there is such a close interest between Charlotte and 
these nearby to^vns that they are considered of'.entimes as 
one immense community, instead of separate, individual 
civic centers. 




-S r O lU c: A i, ( M T iC ll'i^^T 




T THE top of this page will be seen pictures 
of a number of historical points of interest 
at Charlotte. In the center will be seen a 
picture of the tablet imbedded in the in- 
tersection of Trade and Tryon Streets, 
known as the "Square," and which marks the site of the 
signing of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, 
on May 20, I 775, the first official action taken by the 
people of the colonies toward freedom. 

On the left is seen the residence of Mrs. Stonewall 
Jackson, on Trade Street, where resides the widow of 
the great Confederate chieftain. Mrs. Stonewall Jackson 
is loved by the people of this city and State, both for her 
association with one of the leaders of the Southern Con- 
federacy, and for her own sweet characteristics. To 
visitors she is most courteous, and her home is a point of 
especial interest to tourists. 

On the right is seen the Cornwallis Oaks, on Tryon 
Street. It was here that Lord Cornwallis had head- 
quarters, and it was here that he named the people of 
Mecklenburg the "Hornets," and designated Charlotte 
as a "Hornets' Nest." 



11 



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ITHIN recent months, Charlotte has been 
visited by an especially large number of 
people seeking residence. This has brought 
into the limelight the fact that Charlotte is 
coming to be known as "The City of 
Homes. " On the opposite page, will be seen a variety 
of homes and home conditions existing here. At the top 
of the page will be seen a home community plan into 
which the owners of a city block ha\e entered in an 
effort to individualize their home sites. 

Below appears a home in one of the suburban devel- 
opments, and below this is seen a one-family city block 
plan, showing a large park area between the buildings 
and the street. 

At the bottom appears a house which contains all the 
modern conveniences, and is rented for twenty-five dollars 
per month. This building contains six rooms, a bath- 
room, butler's pantry, and reception-hall ; has electric 
lights, water, gas for cooking; is located on a paved 
street, sidewalks laid, and within a half-block of a car 
line whose schedule is five minutes between cars. This 
building is located within easy walking distance of the 
center of the city, and homes of this sort, for rent, are in 
great demand. 

Residences like this, built for investment, are paying 
handsome dividends on the outlay, and are daily increas- 
ing in value also. 

Lower priced homes are to be rented in less attractive 
sections of the city, and homes suitable for the business 
man who does not care to purchase are to be had in all 
sizes, and at all prices, both in the city and in some of 
the most attractive suburban developments. 

Living conditions in Charlotte are not perfect, but 
advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. 



A J O \) ',) I iM c^, C, :C N T ;l ;C 



HARLOTTE is naturally and logically a 
jobbing centre. Its geographical location 
is such as to make it so. Its progressive 
i^^^^^gj citizenship adds to this natural condition, 
*^^^>C — DO and the fact that it is the centre of one of 
the most progressive communities in the United States, 
that its transportation facilities cannot be equaled, to say 
nothing of surpassed, all combine to make it a point from 
which enormous quantities of merchandise are distributed. 

Here are located wholesale houses, jobbers, and 
manufacturers, whence it is possible for this entire section 
to secure its stocks of merchandise, without the necessity 
of going to distant cities, spending time and money to 
reach them, waiting long periods of time for the delivery 
of orders, and the necessity of investing large sums of 
money in stocks which are not to be used for months to 
come. 

The fact that ' filling-in" orders, mailed by a mer- 
chant in Charlotte territory one day, to Charlotte, are 
filled that day or the following at the outside, and are 
shipped, as a rule, within twenty-four hours after the 
receipt of the order, is making this a most excellent trad- 
ing centre for many, many miles around. 

The banking facilities of Charlotte are such as to pro- 
vide accommodations as attractive as can be found in the 
North, and these facts, as they become more generally 
known, are but adding to the popularity of Charlotte as 
a jobbing centre, a city where entire stocks of merchan- 
dise of whatsoever nature, or the little emergency order, 
will receive instantaneous attention. 

These conditions work for the mutual advantage of 
Charlotte jobbers and the merchants doing a successful 
business in this territory, in that it keeps capital at home 
and saves time and freight charges. 




N iC A H . (V( T Y 1) 31 Y TTJ , O P ?/( :ii M T 




T IS probable that there is no city in the 



United States that has developed as many 
high-class residential sections within the 
^V:.>i.i past five years as has Charlotte. At the 
top of this page will be seen a view of the 
entrance to one of the smaller but very exclusive resi- 
dential suburbs of the city, which is attracting the atten- 
tion of people from many sections of the country. 

The price at which this property was put on the market 
was considered a short time ago very reasonable, and 
since then in many instances it has been resold several 
times, each seller making a handsome profit on the naked 
real estate. 

Here nothing has been left undone to make an ideal 
suburban residential section. All the conveniences of 
city life — in fact a part of the city, yet detached from it; 
distant enough to miss the roar of city life, and near 
enough to have at beck and call all the benefits of urban 
residence, it is especially attractive to men of means. 

In these developments the restrictions as to home values 
and character of purchasers add materially to the attrac- 
tiveness to the purchaser of discernment. 









^' 








( c: r O ;l ( A I, :C V ( i) jC N (^ iC 

N THE preceding pages will be seen three 
views which are illustrative of the develop- 
ment of Charlotte and this territory within 
recent months. The top picture shows a 
view of the new skyline of this city, and a 
number of the more prominent buildmgs are to be noted, 
among them several churches, hotels, clubs, and the like. 
Office buildings, twelve stories high, appear in the 
background. 

The centre picture is a development well within the 
city, where hundreds of thousands of dollars have been 
spent for homes within the past few years. When the 
photograph here shown was taken, no fewer than six 
residences were in course of construction, and the value 
of the cheapest was more than four thousand dollars. 
This development is within two miles of the heart of the 
city, and has every convenience of the modern and up- 
to-date city. It has been a part of the city for years 
past, and the residences are of a most substantial char- 
acter. Street paving, electric lights, gas, sewers, street 
railway service with a schedule of five minutes, are a few 
of the attractive features of this section, where there are 
restrictions covering the kind and value of homes to be 
erected as well as to the nature of their occupations. 

The bottom picture on the preceding pages shows the 
Sloan's Ferry Bridge over the Catawba River, near 
Charlotte, completed this last winter at a cost of a few 
dollars less than fifty thousand. This bridge is the 
longest concrete structure in this section, the central part 
being one thousand six hundred and seventy feet in length. 
It was built jointly by Mecklenburg County, in which 
Charlotte is located, and Gaston County, on the opposite 
side of the river, and forms a part of the National High- 
way from New ^'ork to Atlanta. 




O U M T Y R O A I) .S 




ECKLENBURG County, N. C, was the 
pioneer in the building of good roads. Be- 
fore those counties which of late have sought 
to take first rank in road building dreamed 
of macadam, Mecklenburg County was 
actually engaged in the building of main roads through- 
out its territory, and from that day to this the work has 
been continued, until now nearly four hundred miles of 
roads, better than the average city street, form a network 
over this entire county. 

A glance at the pictures at the top of this page will 
give an idea of the construction of these roads. It will 
be seen that they cross streams on concrete bridges rather 
than the old wooden structures, which endangered, sooner 
or later, life and limb of those who of necessity crossed 
them. 

These county roads are graded so that there are no 
stiff grades to be taken, and a two-horse team now has 
no sort of trouble in bringing a load of twelve bales of 
cotton to the Charlotte market, and the speed of the 
auto on these highways is limited only by its horsepower 
and the nerve of the driver. 



i) 1( A :M, O r r :'. C i. ( iV( A T :'. 




NE of the most valuable natural assets of 
Charlotte and immediate vicinity is its 
vk'holesome climate. Situated in the Pied- 
mont section of North Carol. na, about two 
hundred miles from the Atlantic Coast on 
the east, and two hundred miles from the crest of the 
Blue Ridge mountains on the west, and nearly eight hun- 
dred feet above sea level, it has a sub-temperate climate, 
noted for its freedom from sudden temperature changes, 
high winds, or destructive storms. 

The average annual temperature of Charlotte (for 
thirty-three years) is sixty degrees. The coldest month 
is January, with an average temperature of forty degrees; 
while the warmest month is July, the average temperature 
being seventy-nine degrees. The average mmimum tem- 
perature of January is thirty-three degrees, and the aver- 
age maximum, forty-nme degrees. 

The average maximum temperature for July is eighty- 
eight degrees, and the average minimum temperature is 
sixty-nine degrees. 

It will thus be seen that the winters are comparatively 
mild, while the summers are not excessively hot. The 
winters are cold enough to have an invigorating effect, 
the average number of days per winter with freezing 
temperature being forty-five. This is less than one day 
in three, after winter sets in, on which the mercury reg- 
isters thirty-two degrees or lower. 

The heat of the summers is lessened, seemmgly, by the 
comparative dryness of the atmosphere during the sum- 
mer afternoon. The annual average of the relative 
humidity at eight a. m., is seventy-eight per cent. ; at eight 
p. m., sixty-four per cent. No record of humidity read- 
ings at other hours in the day have been kept, but on sum- 
mer afternoons the humidity ranges lower than either of 



the above percentages. This feature alone is worthy 
of special note. 

Agriculturally, the long growing season is of primary 
importance. From the average date of last killing frost 
in spring, to the average date of first killing frost in fall, 
the period is two hundred and nineteen days, which is 
exactly six-tenths of the year. This allows ample time 
for the maturity of the slowest-growing crops, and time 
for maturity of two, or even more, of the crops of quick 
growth. 

Precipitation is well distributed for agricultural pur- 
poses. The average yearly precipitation is 49.20 inches. 
February is the wettest winter month. April, the month 
of planting, has a normal of 3.44 inches. July and 
August, the principal growing months of the year, are 
the wettest, each having normally about five and one- 
half mches. The months of harvest — September, 
October, and November — each have less than three and 
one-fourth inches. November is the only month having 
an average precipitation of less than three inches. 

Snow is not unknown, but is usually limited to light 
falls, which remain on the ground only a short time. 
There have been three winters in thirty-five years in 
which only a flurry of snow occurred, and the average 
annual fall for that time is a little less than seven inches. 

Floods are unknown, there being no large streams in 
the near vicinity. 

The average wind velocity, for twenty years' record, 
is six miles per hour. The highest velocity, in thirty- 
five years, is fifty-five miles per hour. 

Sunshine is abundant, especially during the summer 
and fall months. The average for the year is about sixty 
per cent, of the possible amount. 

It will be seen from the foregoing figures, which cover 
a period of thirty-five years, that the climate of Char- 
lotte is one conducive to good health, as well as to com- 
mercial and agricultural activities. 




X R V R •') A M 




1 T THE top of this page will be seen photo- 
graphs of Interurban trains, both at Char- 
lotte and on line to the south. This is a 
new development, completed within the 
O O past twelve months, which is meaning much 
to this city and the country served. It has increased the 
value of farm lands through which or near which it oper- 
ates, brings the people of the various sections into closer 
touch, and makes for a general bettering of living and 
business conditions. 

This line is now being completed to the south, and 
within a short time will extend from Charlotte, N. C, to 
Greenwood and Anderson, S. C. To the north, this line 
will go in the near future to Durham, N. C, at least, 
and probably to the coast. 

This system is operated by hydro-electric power, gen- 
erated by one of the four companies located within a 
radius of fifty miles of the City of Charlotte, and is a 
freight-carrying line also. Freight trains, drawn by huge 
electric engines over a one per cent, standard roadbed, 
materially aid commerce and increase the value of lands 
through which they operate. 




c, 1 ( A 11 L o r • r :■: ' .s m :'. v/-S;\'\i';C!i.s 

P HE newspapers of Charlotte offer a fair 
measure of the progress and prosperity of 
the city. Three daily newspapers, with 
twenty-five other publications of various 
kinds and nature, make up the publicity 
department of the city. 

The daily newspapers, one morning and two after- 
noon, are members of the Associated Press, and receive 
daily the complete daily report of this greatest news 
gathering and distributing agency in the world. This 
service is so complete that every day Charlotte people 
may read of the present activities of armed forces in the 
Orient, the acts of the Reichstag at Berlin, or the stories 
of discoveries, scientific or otherwise, throughout the 
world. One may read of the doings of the American 
Congress, of the acts of the Congressman and Senator 
from his own district and State; of achievements of man- 
kind in every State in the Union, and of the success of 
his fellowmen throughout North America. He may 
read of the acts of the Governor of the State of North 
Carolina, the doings of the people of the various one 
hundred counties of the Old North State, and of the 
wonderful development of yet more wonderful resources 
throughout the length and breadth of his own State. He 
may read of the activities of the people of his own 
county — Mecklenburg, of the City of Charlotte, and of 
his own Ward ; and if he has accomplished aught that 
day he will find a truthful record of the same in the 
columns of his paper. 

The periodicals of the city serve the same purpose in 
their different fields, so that one of the most attractive 
features of living in Charlotte is the ease with which one 
keeps in direct and almost personal touch with the great 
outside world. 




rici/iCPKOi 



c:OiV(iVU;iNlc:A-.lMOi^ 



<:x 



HE telephone connections of Charlotte are 

f I not to be equaled anywhere in this country. 

Within the city of Charlotte there are 

'l__v^.v, nearly five thousand individual telephone 

^^^ stations, and from this city they reach into 




every tovv'nship and school district of Mecklenburg 
County, and thence into the ent re United States through 
the long distance lines. 

Housed in buildings erected for that sole purpose, and 
supplied with such equipment as telephone engineers have 
spent many years to perfect, manned by efficient and 
capable people, the system offers all that is to be desired 
by the homeseeker or the business developer. 

In the illustration at the top of the page is to be seen 
another business building, occupied by a one-man busi- 
ness, which g-.ves an idea of the substantiality of the 
structures erected for business purposes in Charlotte. 
No ramshackle construction is allowed in the fire limits; 
and they are sufficiently extensive to cover the larger part 
of the city. 

In the centre is a business street scene, with a twelve- 
story office building in the distance. 



o iV( ic \) c; ( I, I) 1 N c. 






T IS a well-known fact that it is easier to 
-^1 own a home in Charlotte, N. C, than any- 
^f^t) where else in the world. There are several 
^^^Mii reasons for this condition, but the most 
important is the fact that in this city are a 
number of Building and Loan Associations, which make 
it exceedingly difficult for a thrifty individual to not own 
a home. 

There is one Association in this city which has been 
in continuous and successful operation since 1881, and 
another since 1 883, these being thirty-two and thirty 
years old, respectively. There is still another nearly 
twenty years old; one went into business four years ago; 
while the last one was organized during the past Winter. 
The feature which stands out head and shoulders above 
everything else in connection with the existence and opera- 
tion of these organizations is that in all this time not a 
penny has ever been lost through bad loans, nor other- 
wise, except through the inevitable error of making 
change, such as occurs with a teller or cashier of a bank. 
This is a record of which no other financial system can 
truthfully boast. 

The gross assets of these institutions since organization 
totals $13,500,000, and they have made in the neigh- 
borhood of seventy-five thousand loans, and more than 
eight thousand homes have been constructed, in whole 
or in part, or relieved of burdensome mortgages, by this 
means alone in the City of Charlotte. Three of the 
Associations are maturing on an average of eight series 
annually, and this means the retirement of many mort- 
gages, and the turning loose into the avenues of trade and 
commerce of large sums of money. 

These institutions have been the enabling power in the 
erection of handsome churches, commodious hospitals and 



sanitariums, beautiful college buildings, and many pri- 
vate business houses which now occupy the commercial 
d stricts. In many instances they have been the means 
of transforming nearby farming lands into charming resi- 
dential districts; and they are largely responsible for the 
great and substantial activity in the local real estate 
market. They have stimulated education until today any 
of our boys and girls may go to one of the great colleges 
that do honor to this section. 

They have promoted temperance and sobriety, moral- 
ity and religion, for all of them find their chief inspira- 
tion in the home. 

Charlotte is famous for its electrical energy ; its trans- 
portation facilities ; its good roads and paved streets ; its 
beautiful churches; its strong banks; its stately office 
buildings; its cotton mills and other manufacturing enter- 
prises; but the fame that is dearer to the hearts of the 
people of this city, more enduring and ennobling, and 
more attractive to those not so fortunate, is contained in 
the simple statement: 

"Charlolle is the Ciflj of Homes" 

There is now in active operation in the Building and 
Loan Associations more than sixty thousand shares, 
growing steadily toward maturity, representing a par 
value of more than $6,000,000. Estimating the popu- 
lation at fifty thousand, there is about one and a half 
shares for every man, woman, and child, white and 
black, within the city limits of Charlotte. This means 
that there is being paid into these associations from 37'/2 
to 44 cents per capita each week, toward the build- 
ing of homes. 

The United States census shows that a larger percent- 
age of Charlotte's permanent population owns homes 
than in any other city of its size, and this to the business 
man spells prosperity among the rank and file of the 
citizenship from which comes the support of almost every 
sort of enterprise. 




iBiiii 









T THE top of this page is to be seen three 
of the hospitals of Charlotte. Plans are 
now being made for the erection of two 
additional hospitals, the principal feature 

■- "^ of which will be charity. Three of the 

present hospitals have a charity feature, in which those 
who are so unfortunate as not to be able to pay for hos- 
pital service can secure expert treatment. 

All e.xcept one of the Charlotte hospitals are owned 
and operated under the direct-on of a church, while the 
exception is owned and operated by a stock company 
composed principally of physicians of the city. From 
many sections of the State, people stricken in health are 
brought to Charlotte for attention, and if the knowledge 
of the men of medicine and the attention of the attending 
nurses can avail they soon return to their homes either 
entirely recovered or materially benefited by their sojourn 
here. 

It is said that the equ'pment of Charlotte's hospitals 
wil' compare most favorably with that of institutions of 
worldwide fame, and w^ith Piedmont climate to assist 
they are most successful. 




HARLOTTE is essentially a Southern city, 
being possessed of the true and far-famed 
Southern hospitality, and lacking in the 
prejudices which are so distasteful to those 
who are not in sympathy with them. 
In this North Carolina city the negro is respected by 
the white population so long as he respects himself, and 
the result is that the black man here is making strides 
which are surprising to those who do not realize the rela- 
tions existing between the races in this city. 

At the top of the opposite page is to be seen a negro 
hospital in this city, where the ill of the race may find 
treatment at the hands of the best physicians of the 
State. 

Below is seen a negro church which, if it were a 
Christian virtue, white Christians of many communities 
of the North as well as the South might well envy. Built 
by the subscription of negroes entirely, this structure is a 
monument to the thrift and religious inclinations of Char- 
lotte negroes. 

Below appears the library presented Biddle Univer- 
sity, that institution of learning for the negroes of this 
section made possible by the Biddle family of Phila- 
delphia, by Andrew Carnegie whose name its bears, 
and where is to be found the best literature. And im- 
mediately underneath is seen a view of the University it- 
self, and its campus studded by magnificent trees, who, 
if they had tongues, might tell of very different con- 
ditions prevailing among the negroes of the United States 
only a few years ago, whence the race has risen to a 
place of importance in the nation. 

In this institution the negro youth of the country are 
being trained to take their pjace in the everyday affairs 
of life, and to reflect credit upon the race which has made 



greater progress in a half-century than is to be found 
recorded upon the pages of history. 

The best teachers to be obtained are here found, and 
the environment is of the proper sort and kind. The 
record of the graduates of this University is one to which 
the founders may well point with pride. 

At the bottom of the page is to be seen the city library 
for the negroes, the low building to the right. This 
institution is supported by the City of Charlotte for the 
sole and exclusive use of the negroes of Charlotte, and 
here is to be found the duplicate of the best libraries of 
towns of this size. 

Across the s'de street is to be seen a negro publishing 
house, owned and operated entirely by the negro race, 
and whence issues a religious publication which would 
be a source of pride to almost any white congregaton. 
It is of constructive value to the community. 

The negroes in the rural districts of the county are 
progressive, industrious, and are not given to disturbances 
with which the negro of the South is often charged; and 
withal the black man of this community is a living demon- 
stration of what the race can accomplish, given a friendly 
and co-operative spirit from their white neighbors. 

A large number of negroes are in successful business 
in the city of Charlotte, and in the adjacent country they 
are leaders in agriculture and fruit growing. In the 
professions they stand well, and are respected by their 
white neighbors because they respect themselves and the 
community in which they live. 

In Mecklenburg County the negro is welcomed in the 
pursuits to which he is best adapted, and there is nothing 
of the race prejud'ce felt elsewhere, and he is given every 
opportunity to better his own condition and that of his 
children, to the end that the coming generation will have 
shown more progress than the present. He is assisted in 
his laudable undertakings rather than hampered and 
handicapped. 




•!( ( c^, 1( ;C ;l X t) U C A T ( O M 




HERE was a time when (he education ol 
the girls of the family was considered a 
luxury, and comparatively little attention 
was paid to them, while the boys of the same 
family were sent to the highest grade col- 
leges of the country. 

Later there was a change, and many girls were sent 
to college in d-stant cities. But the cost was then im- 
mense, and only the favored few were able to take this 
course. But at Charlotte are to be found institutions for 
the education of the girls of the country amid the very 
best surroundings, by the best tutors to be secured at any 
price. 

A glance at the pictures at the top of this page will 
give an idea of the natural environment at a Charlotte 
college for girls. Equipped with all that goes lo make a 
college a place where a real and valuable education and 
proper training is to be had, Charlotte institutions offer as 
good as can be found anywhere. Many people remove 
to this city to live while they educate their sons and 
daughters, and then become permanent residents of the 
city because they like the place and its people. 




c: ] 1 A 11 T . O ■ r r :'/3 CITY .SC^IIOQI.S 

HERE is no feature of city life more im- 
yi^ portant than that of schools. From the 
days of the signing of the Mecklenburg 
Declaration of Independence — May 20, 
1775 — the people of this community have 
sought and obtained an education. They have realized 
that their children must be better educated than their 
parents, and have continuously provided therefor. Within 
the past twelve months a total of one hundred thousand 
dollars has been expended for new school buildings within 
this city, and several sections which were not provided for 
as well as could be desired were put on a parity with the 
more favored parts of Charlotte, so that at this time 
people living in any part of the city have a high-grade 
school within easy distance of their homes. 

The Central High School and eight grammar schools 
take care of the white children, and two schools are pro- 
vided for the colored children. During the present year 
the enrollment in the Charlotte schools is 5,95 7. Of these 
3,980 are white, and 1,977, colored. 

These children are taught by a competent corps of 
instructors, totaling 123. 

The High School prepares boys for the Freshman 
class at the University of North Carolina, and girls for 
the Sophomore and Junior classes of the colleges for 
women. Prof. H. W. Walker, State Supervisor of 
High Schools, has credited the Charlotte High School 
with more Carnegie units than any other High 
School in North Carolina. In the piesent Freshman 
class at the University of North Carolina, a Charlotte 
High School boy lakes highest rank, and another Char- 
lotte High School boy takes third rank in the same 
class. At Davidson College this year, in a graduating 
class of sixty men, a Charlotte High School boy took 



second rank, and another took third rank. At Trinity 
College, a Charlotte High School boy has been recently 
made instructor in mathematics at Trinity Park High 
School. Th:s same record continues through Wake 
Forest, the State Agricultural and Mechanical College 
for the boys, and through all the colleges for women in 
the Stale and section. 

The cooking department of the Charlotte High School 
is splendidly equipped, and the State High School in- 
spector recently declared it to be the best he had seen in 
a High School. Cooking and sewing are taught by 
demonstration; and a commercial course is to be added 
this year. 

The city school authorities endorse the doctrine of a 
sound mind in a sound body, and therefore encourage 
athletics. Football and baseball teams for the boys, and 
basket-ball for the girls, are under the supervision of a 
member of the faculty. 

The grammar school course in the Charlotte school 
covers seven years, while the High School course covers 
four years, making eleven years of high-grade training at 
the cost of the city. In the grammar schools, especial 
emphasis is laid upon the thorough teach ng of the essen- 
tials — reading, writing, and arithmetic; and proper at- 
tention is given draw'ng, music, and other courses. The 
city makes an appropriation annually to send one-third of 
the teaching force to the various summer schools, enabling 
the teachers to keep themselves well informed and fully 
abreast of the times. 

The schools are supported by a tax of twenty cents on 
the one hundred dollars property valuation, and the ex- 
pense of the city schools for the past year totaled $66,- 
293.04. 

1 he excellence of the city schools brings many resi- 
dents to Charlotte, from immediately surrounding ter- 
ritory as well as from a distance. The high standards 
maintained call for high praise from educators. 





'^ .•^•.,^.Jrt.-'fJ.^* 




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AIRYING about Charlotte is an industry 
which has shown immense development 
within the past few years, due to several 
causes, among which is the increasing popu- 
lation of this city, the fact that this section 
is especially adapted to dairying, and that the climate 
lends itself to the business in a most satisfactory way. 
When it is known that the growing season at Charlotte is 
exactly six-tenths of the year, and that a greater part of 
the remaining four-tenths is so mild that no housing is 
necessary for cattle, it is seen at once that there is all 
reason for profit and pleasure in the business. 

The people of Charlotte appear to be using more mlk 
and butter than heretofore, with the result that new dairy 
outfits have done well from the beginning, and there is 
room for yet others. The city statutes provide for milk 
of a standard, and examinations are made from time to 
time to protect the people and the dairymen from all 
troubles incidental to the trade. The initial expense of 
equipping a dairy is well-n'gh the entire outlay, since 
Charlotte is so ideally located as to eliminate excessive 
feed'ng and high-cost care for animals durmg the wmter. 



S T O C X H A 1 .'S 1 M n 




jfMONG the industries which have been 
neglected to a degree in this section, and 
one which offers perhaps as great returns 
for money and labor and time invested as 
any, is stock raising. This applies to well- 
nigh all classes and kinds of stock, with the single excep- 
tion of sheep, this section not being adapted to their 
growth to secure the best results. 

The growing of high-bred hogs has been shown to be 
a most successful undertaking in th's county. The Berk- 
shire prizewinner for the United States is a native of 
Mecklenburg County, and this entire section is peculiarly 
fitted for the growth of the bacon-producers. 

At this time large quantities of bacon and hams, to- 
gether with lard and other by-products, are shipped into 
this county ; but there is no reason for it except that there 
is none to undertake the production of these food-products 
for the people at home. 

The dairy business, of which more is to be found on 
another page of this publication, has undergone a com- 
plete transformation within recent years, by reason of the 
introduction of high-bred cattle; and one dairy, which 
carries nothing except the highest-bred cattle that can be 
purchased, secures a premium of sixteen cents per gallon 
for certified milk, because of the fact that it contains a 
much larger percentage of food value than milk produced 
by the average cow. 

The horses and mules used in this county and section 
are of a much higher value than in almost any community 
pointed out. This is the result of work on the part of 
lovers of horseflesh and of those who have long been 
interested in the general improvement of farm conditions. 

Big returns on the money invested are coming to those 
engaged in scientific stock raising. 




C, O V :C ;l iM iVl !'. M T '•) U ( I, D ( N C .S 




i>o>c 



HARLOTTE has outgrown the Federal 
building, and Congress has appropriated a 
quarter of a million dollars to build a new 
and more commodious structure, where the 
3 postal affairs of this city will be handled. 
Work will soon commence on the new building, according 
to information from Washington, and ere long an adequate 
building will take the place of the handsome big post- 
office which has grown too small for the city. 

The Mecklenburg County Courthouse stands upon 
the site of Queen's Museum, located by the English 
queen in the eighteenth century. A handsome building, 
well equipped and located, it is a pride to the taxpayers 
of the county. In front stands the monument to the 
signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, 
which document came into being May 20, I 775. 

In front of the postoffice building is seen the Shipp 
Monument, the first officer killed in the Spanish-Ameri- 
can war, a resident of this city. The building in the 
background is the United States mint building, used for 
many years for the issuing of money, and later as a 
United States Assay office. 




A c. Ti •( c c; I. r u u X 

ECKLENBURG County, N. C, is far- 
famed for its rich lands, and for the abund- 
ance of yields of all crops adapted to this 
Piedmont section. One of the great money 
crops is cotton, and the annual income from 
this one crop for this one county reaches near the tvvo- 
million-dollar mark. 

But diversification has been the plan of Mecklenburg 
farmers for years and years past, so that this is unlike 
many sections, where the land has been systematically 
robbed year in and year out ; and the fertility which 
attracted the attention of the thrifty Scotch-Irish in the 
eighteenth century is still drawing to this section the 
right sort of new people. A few years ago there was a 
movement from the country surrounding Charlotte into 
this city, for a number of reasons, and that left many 
farms untended, and at the same time added to the 
consummg element in the cty. This has resulted in the 
necessity of importing into Mecklenburg County many 
articles of food which could as well or better be produced 
in this immediate neghborhood. Within the recent past, 
a number of most excellent people of experience and thrift 
have come to this county, and have engaged in trucking, 
either in a small way or on a larger scale, resulting in 
excellent returns to them, and at the same time the people 
of this city are being furnished with home-grown truck at 
more reasonable prices than they have been called upon 
to pay for inferior food products from a d-stance. 

^ et there is a demand for many additional families of 
this kind in this county, where the price of land is still 
exceedingly low when compared with the same sort of 
property in other sections of the United States. 

Aside from trucking, the staple agricultural features 
of this county are attractive to a notable degree. 



[!■ il U ( T c^, R O y/ -{ N c^. 



tV~^"irr^^ RUIT growing is one of the features of 
I ] ^' ~- -' community life which has been neglected to 
a greater or lesser degree by the people of 
jj^'i^c^fji: this section, and the result is that immense 

"< )0 quantities of fruit of all kmds are shipped 
into this city every year. 

This is especially true of peaches and the smaller 
fruits. Apples grow better and give better returns a 
little to the north of this particular community, while this 
is the home of the peach, and investments in orchards 
of this fruit give wonderful returns where time and labor 
are added to the financial needs. 

The small fruits, however, offer the greatest oppor- 
tunities for immediate and continued success. Straw- 
berries are at home in this climate and soil, and it is de- 
clared by experts that the flavor and color of the Mecklen- 
burg berry is not to be equaled by those grown in any 
part of the world. 

The labor necessary to produce this most satisfactory 
and greatly-sought-for fruit is comparatively little, and the 
initial outlay is small, while the returns are scarcely to 
be believed by those who do not have actual personal 
knowledge. Small areas planted to this fruit have already 
made people of small origmal means independent. 

Blackberries, of the cultivated variety, are much 
sought after, and those who have had the foresight to 
invest in this industry are reaping their leward in immense 
percentages ; and thus it is all along the line of fruit 
growing. 

Watermelons from this county are famed wherever the 
melon is known. For size, texture of meat, sweetness, 
and flavor, they have no equal, and the manner in which 
they grow in the sandy loams of certain parts of this 
county reminds one of the grapes of Eshcoi. 








c: o iV( iV( (/ M {-cr I ) ic y !'. i, o i> iV( t-: n ■ 



T the top of this page is to be seen views of 
one of the residential developments of the 
city of Charlotte, where the idea of com- 
munity life is being worked out. This 
<^>CZZD<Z2> suburban section is one of the several about 




Charlotte which is attracting to Charlotte a class of resi- 
dents which means much both for the newcomers and 
for the city. 

Here the restrictions on buildings are severe, the kind 
and cost of homes being looked after very carefully by 
the owners, so that the section is one which appeals par- 
ticularly to the family seeking something a little different 
from the general run. 

Near the center of activity of the City of Charlotte, 
yet not a part of its busy business life, it offers especial 
attractions to the man of affairs who does not desire to 
live so far from the scene of his operations. 

Beautiful homes are being erected in this section, more 
are contracted for, and the development, which has 
already reached a high degree, continues toward per- 
fection, adding almost daily to the best population of 
Charlotte. 




I'HE Greater Charlotte Club is the Board of 
Trade or Chamber of Commerce of Char- 
lotte. It is now in its seventh year, and 
f^ points with a great deal of pride to 
accomplishments like bringing two lines of 
railroad to the city within that time, together with many 
industries, ranging from a few thousand dollars" capital 
stock to those of hundreds of thousands. 

The Greater Charlotte Club is neither political nor 
religious in its nature, and no matter bordering on either 
can come under its consideration. Politics, either local. 
State, or national, is under the ban, so far as the organi- 
zation is concerned. Its members, nearly one thousand 
in number, are in each and every instance qualified voters, 
and as a rule each exercises his right of franchise on any 
and every matter which presents itself, personally and 
individually, but not as an officer or member of the Club. 

It IS the same way in religious matters. Any question 
which borders on the denominational cannot be discussed 
by the Club, and this rule is adhered to steadfastly. At 
times it appears to some that the Club should take a hand 
in matters religious, but experience teaches that in the 
long run the Club and the City suffer when this is done. 

The purposes of the Club are to build up Charlotte in 
every way. Commercially, educationally, residentially, 
and in fact in every way that will make for a big- 
ger, better, busier town, where living conditions are the 
best. Its work is directed by a board of twelve of the 
leading business and professional men of the city, and 
any movement which has for its purpose the upbuilding 
of Charlotte along any line has the hearty support of the 
Greater Charlotte Club. Its Information Bureau is used 
extensively by its members and the public in general, 
without expense of any sort or kind. 




twffC- 



11 !«: 



I) 



A ii r iV( ic 




HE FIRE department of the City of Char- 
lotte is one of the most effective to be found 
in a city the size of this. Two automobile 
trucks enable the firemen to reach the scene 
of trouble within the shortest possible length 
of time, and these are supported by a complete equip- 
ment of fire-fighting apparatus, including a steamer, hook 
and ladder truck, and hose wagons. 

The department is manned by efficient workers, and 
at th's time the city administration is preparmg to add 
further to their number, in order that the growing de- 
mands may be promptly met. 

The apparatus and men are located at different sta- 
tions throughout the city, so that no section is without 
protection, and at this time at least two and possibly 
three other stations are about to be established in order 
that additional territory may be properly cared for. 

The work of the Charlotte Fire Department attracts 
favorable comment from all who are in a position to 
compare it with that of other cities. Fine streets, ex- 
cellent equipment, and efficient men tell the story of suc- 
cess in this department. 




!) O A Tl "0 O ;r T) ( Tl li: C T ORS 

I N the last page will be found pictures 
of the members of the Board of Directors 
of the Greater Charlotte Club, the com- 
mercial organization of the City of Char- 
lotte, which is responsible for the publi- 
cation of this book. 

Reading from left to right they are: Thomas T. 
Allison, Chairman Public Imprpovement Committee, A. 
V. Harrell, Chairman Membership Committee; J. Frank 
Wilkes, Chairman Convention Committee; Word H. 
Wood, Vice-President; Charles C. Hook, President; 
James A. Houston, Vice-President ; W. R. Foreman, 
Chairman Finance Committee; Leake Carraway, Man- 
aging Secretary; Robert G. Barr, Assistant to the Sec- 
retary; Clarence O. Kuesier, Chairman Ways and 
Means Committee; W. C. Dowd, Chairman Publicity 
Committee; C. G. Creighton, Chairman Transportation 
Committee; and F. C. Abbott, Chairman Industrial 
Committee. Since these pictures were made, Mr. W. S. 
Creighton has succeeded Mr. C. G. Creighton as Chair- 
man of the Transportation Committee. 

Each member of this Board of Directors is either a 
successful business or professional man, and once each 
month they meet at the office of the Greater Charlotte 
Club, regularly to act on many matters of interest and 
importance to the City of Charlotte. On an average 
they meet twice a month, under call of the president, to 
discuss matters of pressing moment which cannot wait 
for the regular monthly meeting. 

Every matter of importance to the city is brought 
before this board before action is taken by the president 
or the managing secretary, to the end that the best pos- 
sible advice is obtained, and mistakes, which are so costly, 
are avoided. 




S A 



A 



O 



1^1 




i=x::>m 



HARLOTTE was somewhat behind cities 
of her size and class in undertaking the 
proper sanitation of her territory, but taking 
the experience of others this city went for- 
ward with the work when once under- 



taken, and at this time the clean, neat appearance of the 
streets of Charlotte cause comment by all who come here. 

An efficient street cleaning force, properly equipped, 
keep the streets in perfect condition, so far as cleanliness 
is concerned, and other departments see to it that no 
damage to paving remains not repaired. 

Street sweepers, both men and machinery, are kept 
in constant activity, summer and winter, and the absence 
of filth of any sort or kind on the streets of Charlotte is a 
distinguishing feature of this community. Refuse is 
hauled outside the city by municipal wagons, and nothing 
is allowed to lie on the streets, detracting from the beauty 
of the city and endangering the life of the people. Char- 
lotte is becoming to be known as the "Clean City." The 
citizenship of Charlotte co-operates to a wonderful degree 
with this department to maintain the high standard set 
by the people for cleanliness. 



AUG 20 1913 




KH'?!?'*' '" 



.h'':\:'^'X£r^k0m^ 




